Tebritory



(No Model.)

A. .W'ITZEL.

SUPPORT FOR BUGGY TOPS.

Patented Feb. 3, 1 885.

HTVENTOR 75 WITNESSES ATTORNEYS.

N. PETERS. Plwwumu m hw. Washington, ac,

.tirsrran States- PATENT @rrrea.

AUGUST W'ITZEL, OF DEAD\VOOD, DAKOTA TERRITORY.

SUPPORT FOR BUGGY-TOPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 311,703, dated February 3, 1885.

Application filed August I, 1894. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, AUGUST WITZEL, of Deadwood, in the county of Lawrence and Territory of Dakota, have invented a new and Improved Support and Buffer for Buggy-Tops, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of my invention is to prevent the breaking of the back bows of buggy-tops as the tops are let down, and also to avoid excessive jumping or shaking of the let-down top and overstraining of its joints and parts when the vehicle is traveling over rough roads.

The invention consists in the peculiar c011- struction and arrangement of parts, as hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate cor responding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 shows my invention as applied to a buggy-top, and with the top raised. Fig. 2 is a side view showing the top lowered and resting on the buffer-support, and Fig. 3 a sectional plan view showing the joint of the support and butter with the shifting-rail.

The letter A indicates the improved top support and buffer, which consist of an arm made in two sections, a b, jointed together on astrong pin at 0, and arubber or other suitable cushion or buffer, B, which I prefer to hold to the outer end of the arm A, between side flanges, (Z (Z, of the arm, as shown; but the buffer B may be held to the arm in any approved way. I attach the arm A to the buggy by placing its section a upon the square or angular portion 0 of the stud or pin 19, which is fixed to the shifting-rail F, held in any approved way to the buggy-seat, and so that the arm-section a will be held against turning on the stud E. I propose to place one at each side of the eye of the arm-section a on the stud E, the elastic or other suitable washers, G G, and outside of them on the round portion 0 of the stud I will place the washer II, outside of which the end 'i of the top prop bar, I, is held loosely, so as to turn on the stud as the buggy-top is raised or lowered. A nut, f, on the stud E outside of the bar I, holds it on the stud. It will, however,

be understood that the washers G G- maybe dispensed with; but in applying my improvement to old buggies I prefer to use them to fill out the space on the square portion e of k the stud E, which usually is taken up by an elastic buffer placed on the stud and on which the back bow, J, of the buggy-top falls, and in fitting the arm-section a on the stud E the same elastic buffer which formerly was on the stud may be used to make the washers G G placed on the stud with the arm-section a of my improved top support and bufier, as will readily be understood. I prefer to connect the arm A at its outer end bya link, K, to the top prop bar, I, so that when the buggy-top is raised the arm-section awill be raised with and held by the bar I, as in Fig. 1, and so that when the buggy-top is lowered the armsection a will belowered with it, when. the shoulders of the arm-joint at 0 will meet and hold the arm-section a rigidly in horizontal position, or nearly so, and so that the back bow, J, of the buggy-top will fall upon the buffer or cushion B at the end of the arm, the link K folding down with the prop-bar I, as shown in Fig. 2. It will be seen that in my i1nprovement the point of support for the back bow of the buggy-top is removed from the shifting-rail stud E and carried back nearly to the outer end or portion of the back bow, and about twice the distance from the main pivot L of the buggy-top, whereby a much more substantial support is given to the top as it falls and afterward, so that in riding over rough roads with the top down the entire top will not be jolted and shaken as when supported at the stud E, and thereby the comfort of riding will be increased and greater durability of the buggy-top insured.

As above intimated, the link Kneed not be used, as the arm-section b may be folded forward on its joint 0 to rest on the buggy-seat when the top is up, and may be thrown back by hand to the position shown in Fig. 2 when the top is to be let down; but by attaching the arm-section a by the link K to the propbar I, the top-support and buffer A B need no attention from the occupant of the buggy, as they are loweredautomatically with the buggy-top and in proper position to receive the back bow on the elastic buffer B of the support.

Having thus described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desiretoscoure by Letters with the top prop-ban, I, pivoted on the stud [0 Patent, is- E, and connected to the head of the arm-sec- A support and buffer for bnggytops, made tion I) by the link K, substantially as shown with an arm, A, consisting of two sections, a and described. I), hinged to ezuh other by a stop-joint at e,

and carrying an elastic block or cushion, B, I 7 AUGUST WITZEL' at its outer end. and said armsection a being Witnesses: fitted on the shifting-rail stud E, so as to be JOHN A. GASTON, held against turning thereon, in combination E. G. LOWE. 

